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ESPN's Holly Rowe will undergo surgery to remove a tumor
In addition to her thoughtful reporting and upbeat demeanor, ESPN sideline reporter Holly Rowe may be best known for how hard she works to get an interview.
She climbed atop a scorer's table to speak with Kansas State's Thomas Gipson two years ago amid a court storming after the Wildcats upset rival Kansas. She held exhausted point guard Juwan Staten upright while chatting with him about his game-winning layup to beat the Jayhawks last year.
If Rowe fights cancer with the ferocity she fights through a crowd, there's little doubt she'll be healthy again in no time. Rowe announced in a statement Tuesday that she will undergo surgery to remove a tumor eight months after having a previous tumor removed from her chest.
"In the coming days, I will know more about what potential additional steps I may take to address this situation," Rowe said in the statement.
“I am very grateful for the support of my bosses at ESPN, who are fully behind me as I take the time to beat this, as well as the incredible connections to The V Foundation. I also sincerely appreciate the guidance of colleague Shelley Smith, who battled cancer so courageously last year.
“I once ran a marathon and as I was struggling to finish, I said to the strangers on the side of the road, who were there to cheer for others, ‘my name is Holly, can you cheer for me too?’ I know I can conquer anything with prayer, love, positive energy and the support of good people behind me, and I am thankful for my son and amazing family."
A graduate of the University of Utah, Rowe worked as a sports reporter and anchor for outlets in Salt Lake City before joining ESPN in 1998. Rowe has primarily covered college football, men’s basketball and softball as a reporter for ESPN.
On Monday night, the eve of her announcement, Rowe was part of ESPN's telecast of Texas' upset of No. 15 Baylor in Waco. Hopefully Rowe will be back on the air again soon, healthy enough to elbow her way through crowds to get to her interview subject the way she always has.
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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
